American Aerospace Controls, Inc., of Farmingdale, New York, provides a series of current sensors which are used extensively for measurement and control applications. They are particularly well suited for overload detection of current in high voltage lines such as in radio and T.V. transmitting equipment and power supplies. Other applications include current leakage detection and sensing the difference between two current levels. A sensor will produce an output proportional to the difference in current when two cables are inserted in a "pass thru hole" with currents flowing in opposite directions. Sensors are also used in process and power control applications and can be obtained with current level instead of voltage level output for direct input to ammeters, recorders or external relay coils.
The above type of current sensors provide preferably a linear DC output voltage corresponding to a DC current input. A "pass thru hole" accepts the current carrying cable without the need for breaking into the line and is thus non-invasive. The output is isolated from the current line. The construction of the above-noted apparatus utilizes a saturable toroidal core to sense magnetic flux associated with the current flow. A detection and signal conditioning circuit produces an extremely stable, accurate and repeatable output over a wide ambient temperature range.